Luxury derived from nature

Africa is rich with resources, talent and beauty and may finally be shedding stereotypical notions of its wealth and worth

THE British queen’s royal sceptre boasts the largest cut diamond in the world. It is from the Cullinan mine in South Africa.

Beauty industry basic shea butter is a billion-dollar industry reliant on farms in West Africa.

Our continent’s natural resources are also what make the tech-driven fourth industrial revolution possible. South Africa alone produces more than 70% of the world’s platinum and more than 80% of the world’s rhodium necessary for the production of cars; more than half of the world’s cobalt (used in batteries) come from the Congo; and Mozambique is among the world’s top producers of tantalum, a metal used to manufacture cellphones, laptops and digital cameras.

Minerals are surely seated in the African lap of luxury. Agriculture and natural materials, from leather to diamonds, also have a place in the rising empire. Fashion, it seems, can no longer resist Africa’s allure.

Garnering much attention, Black Panther’s Wakanda (somewhere not exact in Africa), has already made an imprint on pop culture.

At New York Fashion Week, one event was dubbed, “Welcome to Wakanda” and, African-inspired fashion is best illustrated by the meteoric rise of brands such as Maxhosa by Laduma Ngoxokolo – featuring at Paris Fashion Week and endorsed by Beyoncé and Alicia Keys.

Meanwhile, Chanel and Gucci are struggling to sell their costly clothes and are generating their worst operating profit since the 2009 financial crisis, according to reports in the Daily Mail.

If Prada is feeling passé, Kente might be the new cool.

Next weekend The Sun Met takes place at Kenilworth Racecourse.

The theme African Luxury: Precious Metals is just the patriotic nudge we need to turn a gaze toward our continent’s rich resources and the luxury brands they’ve spawned.

We’ve rounded up a few to inspire the process: